The boat is from a different time and this makes us think it is about another time period not now. The heavily armed rabbits and the bilby creatures silently watching what is going on makes the reader feel that the country is being invaded. The rabbits look very aggressive, confident and frightening in their uniforms. The ship is the largest object in the picture and is very dominating. The bilby creatures are very small and powerless against such a big ship. It shows that the rabbits have absolute power in this land.
The ship blocks the picture, it is like a wall, keeping people out and blocking the view. The ship has a section which is like a factory. This gives the reader the idea that they will bring industrialisation and pollution. Their are also allusions to time on the cover. The invaders measure time by mechanical means not by the sun and moon. They are bringing along totally new alien, concepts about the world..
The rabbits are dressed in red and blue uniforms. They look like British army uniforms and there is a red British type insignia in the top right hand corner. The flag of the invaders is bright red and therefore very noticeable and dominating. it has arrows on it which radiant out from a central point. This suggests that these rabbits intend to radiant out from their landing place and spread throughout the land.
The colours are dark, scary and foreboding and make the reader feel sad and melancholy. There is also a storm brewing. Storms give a sense of uneasiness like something bad is about to happen.
What might the reader expect the book to be about ?
The reader would expect this book to be about a dominant race of creatures invading a country where the indigenous creatures are quite and peaceful. There is a possibility that it could also mean the invasion of the British into Australia. The rabbits could be the British soldiers and the bilby creatures the Aboriginal people.
